Portsmouth February 2021 review - Optimism for the end of lockdown while fourth time was the charm for happy couple determined to tie the knot

The jab rollout brought new hope to the city as the success of phase two of the vaccination programme eased the pandemic’s toll on those shielding from the virus.

With vaccine numbers rising, The News reported that infection rates were beginning to fall.

As Boris Johnson set out a plan to ease England’s lockdown by June 21, the prime minister promised that ‘the end really is in sight’.

Shops and salons looked forward to the end of lockdown, with businesses rejoicing over the promised ‘light at the end of the tunnel’.

At the same time, tourist chiefs were hard at work on the ‘Put the Wind in Your Sails’ campaign, ready to welcome back visitors to give Portsmouth’s tourism industry a much-needed boost.

Festival-goers’ hopes were rising that the roadmap out of lockdown would see the return of Victorious on Southsea Common in the summer.

Portsmouth City Council unveiled The Guildhall as a new base for rapid testing, while school bosses campaigned for the February half term to be used as an ‘ideal opportunity’ to immunise staff ahead of reopening to pupils.

Headteachers looked forward to the planned return of pupils to school, but spoke out about their fears that a ‘rushed return’ would cause another surge in infections.

This cautious optimism for Portsmouth’s future was balanced against the blows that the pandemic continued to strike across the area.

In one sad story, The News reported on the deaths of ‘popular couple’ Les and Jean Hanks, a devoted pair who died from Covid-19 within mere days of each other.

Former submariner Les, 97, was allowed to be with his beloved wife Jean, 93, when she succumbed to the virus. They were married for 74 years.

Despite the lockdown, police saw a rise in gatherings and house parties, with data obtained by The News showing that reported breaches were happening at a rate of about 90 a day on average.

Meanwhile, a conspiracy theorist who made social media posts claiming that the NHS was not being over-run by Covid patients was banned from all hospitals.

After trying to film patients and staff at QA, 30-year-old Fareham woman Hannah Dean was slammed with an Asbo-style community protection notice banning her from entering NHS premises without an appointment.

In crime news, a rogue trader condemned for his ‘especially cruel’ behaviour was jailed for charming an elderly woman out of her £140,000 life savings.

Michael McCann, 25, tricked his victim into handing over £20,000 in cash and signing away £123,000 in cheques for worthless maintenance work.

In another February headline, a pair were branded ‘bullies’ following a violent attack captured on video and spread on social media.

Daisy Hunt was jailed for three years while her aunt Minnie-Mo Hunt was handed a suspended sentence for the attack, which took place on Southsea Common the previous summer.

The pair had kicked and stamped on their victim in an argument concerning laughing gas.

The News reported that a new police scheme was being launched to help sex workers across the county falling into modern slavery.

Meanwhile, the city was eyeing a transatlantic trade boost to the economy by linking up with its ‘sister’ city, Halifax in Canada.

Despite February’s challenges, love was in the chilly Portsmouth air as Valentine’s Day rolled around.

Determined to overcome lockdowns’ challenges, happy Gosport couple Ruth and Ollie Peck finally managed to tie the knot despite having to change plans for their big day four times.